Porsche Enthusiasts Club Forum

Hi,

The clutch on my 924 has a habit of knocking when cold and I can rotate the torque tube through the inspection hole at the gearbox so its time for a clutch change but I need to decide if I do it myself or pay for a garage to do it.

I have a garage and load of tools, I've removed the exhaust and cv joints\driveshaft’s before so its just removal of the gearbox due to weight and bell housing that concerns me as the car will only be on jack stands with me on the floor. I recently changed the head gasket on the car successfully so thinking the clutch job cant be much more work technically speaking.

Any advice or motivation???

IIRC to remove the gearbox you have to drop the rear subframe. That is where the issues can arise, with the bolts generally being seized in addition to the faff of dropping down the subframe/rear axle.

OTOH, there is a satisfaction to fixing it yourself.

Hi, I always put a couple of wheels under the car to create a survival zone should the worst happen and it gives you the confidence to have the car a bit higher to give you more room to work. Take it slow and steady and if you get frustrated at any point, a cup of tea normally clears the mind. Good luck!

I don’t believe I need to drop the subframe, just the gearbox then slide the torque tube back away from the bellhousing.

The plan was to pop 2x2 breeze blocks under each wheel so its sitting safety off the ground. I did think whilst having the head off it would have been minimal extra work to get the block out and do the clutch at that point.

Once Silverstone classics out the way then try to clear a weekend to get it done. How bad can it be

Ah yes, I don't think you have to on the 924 2.0s .

Can the full clutch kit be changed however like that?

I've done the clutch on my 944S2 and it's not hard. That's to say that no single part of it is hard but there is a lot to it; it's a long but not difficult job. I don't know whether you could do it with the rear wheels on breeze blocks but would suspect not as you'd struggle for clearance to get the gearbox out from under the car. I did it with a friend in a garage with a pit and air tools, and it took the two of us a weekend.

The sequence (from memory) is as follows;

- Driveshafts off
- Exhaust off
- Gear linkage off
- Disconnect drive to gearbox by sliding sleeve within torque tube back
- Drop gearbox. We did this by removing the gearbox mount but in retrospect we'd have done better to drop the cross-member. Gearbox weighs a ton BTW, and it's a tricky lump to manhandle when you are underneath a car.
- Unbolt torque tube and slide back
- Remove pivot bolt for clutch release lever, which is a prize fiddle to do
- Unbolt bellhousing (top bolt is VERY hard to get to)
- Change clutch
- Reassemble

I don't think that the job on a 924 would be significantly different to that on my S2.

Best of luck with it.


Oli.

1 day of labour so about £500 for a garage to do it with all the tools and a lift at their disposal to make it slightly easier than doing on a drive with axle stands. The car will need to at least 2' in the air and back wheels off (you need to rotate the wheels/hub to get the driveshafts off). You will need at least two pairs of hands and a trolley jack to get the gearbox off and on without doing yourself any damage.

So it is a gearbox off job then Steve?

On everything other than a 968 Chas. The series three added an improved bell housing.

Or engine out. Six or two three's?!

Thanks for the replies\ideas. Discovered yesterday that I can get a set of hydraulic ramps to lift the back higher which should make the job a bit easier and as previsouly mentioned I've had the exhaust\driveshafts\gearbox mounts off before so know my way round the car in terms of dismantling most of it.

Ill get Silverstone classic out the way then decide what to do.

If it helps the motivation, I've just completed a 14 week fuel line and rear end refresh including dropping the auto box and shifting the torque tube around on my 968.... The fun part was completing it all on axle stands on the drive.... It can be done but I really would have liked more workspace and to be dry and under cover but the motivation was a deadline to drive her again, oh and we then took a 1300 mile trip to Le Mans
It's a methodical process that is very rewarding but those rusty bolts don't half bring out the swear words..... Heat, cold, nut splitters, grinders and cutters will be your best friends! Safety though as suggested - a couple of wheels under there with you wont go amiss.
Good luck which ever route you take